East Bay News

Vallejo ,Calif. boatbuilder Moose Boats announced it has delivered a new fireboat to the Alameda City Fire Department (AFD) located in Alameda County, Calif.According to the builder, the new Moose M2-38 fireboat is the most powerful ever assembled, running on twin Cummins turbo charged QSB 6.7L 480HP engines with Twin Disc Transmissions and Hamilton HJX 29 waterjets. The boat can reach speeds up to 38 knots with a cruise speed of 30 knots.The vessel is equipped with two large Darley 2000 GPM fire pumps powered by PTO systems that enables full control at the helm while flowing close to 5…

The agency that provides San Francisco Bay Ferry service has won a $13.8 million grant  to electrify ferry terminals and facilities in San Francisco and the East Bay, enabling zero-emission, electric ferry operations on routes connecting Oakland and Alameda to San Francisco.The California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA) grant for the San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority (WETA) will fund electric infrastructure and increased charging capacity to the Downtown San Francisco Ferry Terminal…

C. Raymond Hunt Associates, a boat design firm that continues to expand on the legacy of its founder, C. Raymond Hunt, to produce innovative boats with rugged seaworthiness, is now celebrating its 50th year. “Ray Hunt was a genius, able to intuitively know how boats work and with the courage to experiment,” said C. Raymond Hunt Associates President, Winn Willard. “We have taken Ray's ideas and applied them, honing our expertise and knowledge from the days of the early deep-v hulls. Now we have an 11-meter RIB on virtually every large ship in the U.S.

At its meeting of March 5, the Board of Directors of the Water Emergency Transportation Authority (WETA) approved a Cooperative Agreement with the Contra Costa Transportation Authority (CCTA) and the City of Richmond to provide operating subsidy for proposed Richmond ferry service. The 10-year agreement will serve as the basis of future planning efforts among the involved agencies to support and plan for Richmond ferry service. WETA will now begin the process of securing funding for the purchase of two catamaran ferry vessels and construction of a Richmond ferry terminal, at a cost of approximately $40-45 million. WETA will build the Richmond ferry terminal at Ford Peninsula in Richmond. The ferry service should be fully operational in 2018.

U.S. coffee importers have begun diverting shipments bound for West Coast roasters to ports on the Gulf and East Coasts due to a labor dispute that has caused prolonged backlogs in California, market sources said. Traders said they began re-routing ships carrying coffee from El Salvador and Brazil, among other origins, destined for California ports three or four weeks ago, sending them instead to ports in Houston, New Orleans, Virginia and New Jersey. "Why back up more containers in a place that's not releasing them?" said Christian Wolthers, president of green coffee importers Wolthers Douque USA in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on Thursday.

MOL (America) Inc. said that Michael Checchi will enter the position of vice president, area operations, where he will lead MOL’s equipment, intermodal services, contract management, and operations administration groups for the United States and Canada. He will report to Richard Craig, executive vice president for sales and operations. Checchi served as the director of intermodal operations for OOCL for the past 13 years where he directed rail and motor carrier services procurement. He has also served in various operations roles with Matson Intermodal System, Inc. and APL Land Transport Services. He earned his undergraduate business administration degree from California State University, East Bay. “We’re excited to have someone with Mr.

With the announcement that the BART Strike is on, the SF Bay Ferry has implemented increased service on most routes. Enhanced service will begin with a 5 a.m. Vallejo departure to San Francisco on Friday, October 18. See sanfranciscobayferry.com for all BART strike schedules. The BART strike service schedules will be in effect until BART formally announces the strike is called off. If a partial day mid-day strike occurs, San Francisco Bay Ferry will operate its strike schedule for the whole day and will return to its regular schedule the next morning. Weekend BART strike service will be provided to/from the Vallejo, Oakland, San Francisco and Alameda Main Street terminals.

With the announcement that BART Unions and BART management have requested an extension of their negotiations for another day, the SF Bay Ferry will continue with its regular weekday schedule Wednesday, October 16. If a partial day midday strike occurs, San Francisco Bay Ferry will operate its strike schedule for the whole day and will return to its regular schedule the next morning. Weekend BART strike service will be provided to/from the Vallejo, Oakland, San Francisco and Alameda Main Street terminals.

San Francisco Bay Ferry's much-anticipated service between the East Bay and South San Francisco will launch on Monday, June 4, giving commuters a fast, stress-free alternative to the daily grind of traffic on the Bay Bridge and along Highway 101. Commuters will have the option to enjoy a comfortable and scenic 40- to 50-minute ride aboard sleek, modern vessels equipped with free WiFi and a host of other amenities. And, their fare is free for the first week of service. Commuters may reserve their free seat on a first-come, first-served basis by visiting www.sanfranciscobayferry.com.

Owners of tankship 'Dubai Star' reach settlement in civil suit brought by San Francisco, Oakland Dept. Bay area East Bay beaches and birds took the brunt of the damage, but the Dubai Star spill was also bad news for crab fishers says SF Weekly. The owner and operator of a tanker that spilled oil in the bay has agreed to a $1.96 million settlement with San Francisco, Oakland and the California Department of Fish and Game. The Dubai Star leaked between 400 and 800 gallons of oil into the San Francisco Bay in October 2009 about 2 1/2 miles south of the Bay Bridge. Teresa Drenick, with the Alameda County District Attorney's Office, said…

The California State University Board of Trustees will begin the search next month for a new president of the California Maritime Academy to succeed  President William B. Eisenhardt, who is retiring after serving as president of the university since 2001. The first meeting of the search committee will be held in an open forum from 10 a.m. to noon on Wednesday, March 7 at the Rizza Auditorium on the Cal Maritime campus, followed by a closed meeting of the committee at 1 p.m. This is the only meeting of the committee that is an open meeting. CSU Trustee Peter Mehas will chair the Trustees’ Committee for the Selection of the President. The other trustee members of the selection committee include Steven Glazer, Bob Linscheid and Henry Mendoza, as well as Trustee Chair Herbert L.

Water Emergency Transportation Authority Awards Ferry Operating Contract to Blue & Gold Fleet. At its October 6 Board of Directors meeting, the San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority (WETA) awarded Blue & Gold Fleet ("B&GF") a five-year contract for the operation of WETA's San Francisco Bay Ferry services. San Francisco Bay Ferry, which recently assumed operation of the Alameda/Oakland and Harbor Bay Ferries, provides daily commute and excursion service between Alameda, Oakland, San Francisco, and Harbor Bay. In early 2012, San Francisco Bay Ferry plans to launch new ferry service between South San Francisco and the East Bay and to assume operation of the City of Vallejo's Baylink ferry operating between Vallejo and San Francisco.

Oil Spill Proceeds Of Settlement to Fund Projects and Restore Natural Resources Largest Oil Pollution Act Settlement in History of the Law. Federal, state and Bay-area officials announced a comprehensive civil settlement with the owners and operators of the M/V Cosco Busan, resolving all natural resource damages, penalties and response costs that resulted from the ship striking the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge in 2007, and subsequent oil spill in the San Francisco Bay. The event killed thousands of birds, impacted a significant portion of the Bay’s 2008 herring spawn, spoiled miles of shoreline habitat and closed the bay and area beaches to recreation and fishing. The U.S.

Construction on the South San Francisco Ferry Terminal begins at Oyster Point Marina with an official groundbreaking ceremony. At 10:30 a.m. on Monday, October 19, 2009 civic leaders will kick-off the start of construction of the $26m ferry terminal. Ferry service is scheduled to launch in 2011. Congresswoman Jackie Speier, along with South San Francisco Mayor Karyl Matsumoto and WETA Board Chair Charlene Haught Johnson will turn over the first spade of dirt commencing the start of construction. The project will provide one hundred seventy (170) construction-related jobs & over twenty new full-time maritime operations and supervisory jobs.

On Monday, November 17, 2008, Sheridan Construction of Fairfield, Maine began erecting steel for Washburn & Doughty’s new fabrication building. The building will measure 225’ x 155’ and is designed with two construction bays, each equipped with two twenty-ton cranes. A central, two level mezzanine will contain shop space and offices for production support. This 42,000 sq. ft. facility is designed for vessels up to 200’ long by 50’ wide. Completion of the East Bay is scheduled for the end of December 2008. (Source: Washburn & Doughty Marketing)

The Pakistan government has decided to upgrade the basic infrastructure for construction of commercial cargo ships and warships, including F-22 P frigates, in Karachi, according to a report on www.uniquepakistan.com. The government has allocated funds for the fiscal year 2007-08 and it has already dropped Karachi Shipyard & Engineering Works Limited (KSEW) from its proposed privatization list. It is envisaged that if shipbuilding projects for the Pakistan Navy, Karachi Port Trust (KPT)…

The San Francisco Bay Area Water Transit Authority (WTA), a regional transit agency, announced that Governor Davis signed Senate Bill (SB) 915 (D-Perata, Oakland) giving the WTA the green light to develop seven new Bay Area ferry routes, expand existing ferry routes, and build 31 new boats. The new law, signed on October 10, 2003, makes the WTA a permanent transit agency. The WTA is authorized to operate a comprehensive San Francisco Bay area regional public water transit system. “We are on the brink of a new and exciting future for ferries on San Francisco Bay. The State’s approval is a significant step towards delivering more boats, new routes and good landside connections,” said Charlene Haught Johnson, President, WTA Board of Directors. “We thank the Governor and Legislature.

The San Francisco Bay Area Water Transit Authority (WTA) announced that the recently signed Senate Bill (SB) 915 (D-Perata, Oakland) gives it the go ahead to develop seven new Bay Area ferry routes, expand existing ferry routes, and build 31 new boats. Signed October 10, 2003, the bill makes the WTA a permanent transit agency. "We are on the brink of a new and exciting future for ferries on San Francisco Bay. The State's approval is a significant step towards delivering more boats, new routes and good landside connections," said Charlene Haught Johnson, President, WTA Board of Directors. "We thank the Governor and Legislature. This new law brings to fruition the work of hundreds of people who've advocated for enhancing our region's public transit system with water-transit," added Ms.

Another Nichols Brothers catamaran joined the commuter fleet on San Francisco Bay in November. Nichols Brothers Boat Builders, Inc., of Whidbey Island, Wash., delivered a Cummins-powered, 112-ft. vessel for service between Alameda, Oakland, and San Francisco. The 315-passenger catamaran, M/V Peralta, will be operated by the Alameda/Oakland Ferry Service, with the Blue and Gold Fleet providing maintenance and engineering services. As with the 27 other catamarans built by Nichols Brothers, the vessel was designed by International Catamaran Designs of Sydney, Australia. Commuter route for the Peralta includes the ports of Alameda and Oakland and the ferry landing on the Embarcadero in San Francisco.

Grand Banks Yachts, Ltd., recently appointed two members to their worldwide corporate management team. Rob Livingston has been named vice president of marketing for the global manufacturer of Grand Banks, Eastbay and Aleutian Class yachts. In this capacity, Livingston has worldwide responsibility for brand marketing, overseeing advertising, public relations, promotions, online operations, collateral development and overall marketing management. Luc Colpin has been appointed sales manager for Europe. Prior to this appointment, Colpin had successfully sold Grand Banks beginning in 1989 through an authorized dealership, which he eventually purchased in 1991 and operated for more than 10 years.

The planned South City ferry service will remove an estimated 265 cars from Bay Area bridges during rush hour, according to an environmental impact report released last week. According to the San Francisco Examiner, the report also found that an Oakland-South City ferry route would pose mostly insignificant environmental impacts on the land surrounding the Oyster Point Yacht Club, where a ferry terminal is scheduled for construction. The South City route is geared toward attracting East Bay residents who work in the city’s growing biotech center. Though the agency has received roughly $31 million in state, federal and local dollars to buy two boats and build the terminal…

Knight Ridder reports that even the U.S. Coast Guard boat throttles down and moves aside when the Susan M., Alameda County's new 85-ft. homeland security patrol boat, blasts past Jack London Square toward San Francisco Bay. The Coast Guard boat is said to be a key component of the East Bay's defense against a water-side terrorist attack. But the county's twin-engine cutter -- a sleek fiberglass vessel with a menacing pair of .50-caliber machine guns adorning its bow -- provides proof that there's a new player in town when it comes to guarding the Bay Area from offshore intruders. Alameda County, led by its sheriff, Charles Plummer, has…

Shipyards submitted construction bids in October for the first two Bay Area Water Transit Authority (WTA) vessels. The contract will be awarded in the summer of 2006, with the first boat delivered by late 2007. The vessels will be used as spares until the South San Francisco to East Bay Service is ready for operation in 2008.